MONDAY DECEMBER 23
Causes of concern
People sometimes accuse me of being too optimistic. They say, “It seems as if you are reluctant to break bad news.” They may have a point. I always like to look on the bright side. I do though, understand that some problems may never go away until the day that human beings decide to be a lot less inhuman towards one another. This week, I have given my other columnists a week off while, down at the bottom of the page each day, I write about the causes that most concern me. Some of these DON’T reflect very well on the current state of human nature. But I think, even so, that we all need to think about them...To read the first in the series - click here.

TUESDAY DECEMBER 24
Over-commercialised? Causes for Concern - Homelessness
For some people, Christmas is a time of immense social pressure. The focus on a ‘return to home and family’ can trigger a deep inferiority complex in those whose home and family life is insecure. For others, it is simply a time of disappointment. Christmas just doesn’t seem to mean what it once meant. It has become ‘over-commercialised’. But what DID it once mean? What IS it really all about? In an attempt to address this and get to the true heart of your astrological outlook, I have included an excerpt from a Christmas Carol in every forecast today.PS Merry Christmas.PPS (if you find this season more of a chore than a joy) Never mind. It will soon be over!The second in the Causes for Concern series looks at homelessness - click here.WEDNESDAY DECEMBER 25
Merry Christmas
Peace and goodwill to all.
THURSDAY DECEMBER 26
Jack and the Beanstalk... plus more Causes for Concern - the Environment
And now, ladies and gentlemen, a world first – and a Boxing Day treat. Something that has NEVER been attempted in the history of daily zodiac sign prediction. A set of twelve zodiac forecasts, each of which stands alone, yet all of which, when linked together, form a single narrative. As this is the traditional pantomime season, here is the whole story of Jack And The Beanstalk beginning with Aries and running right through to Pisces... without ONCE compromising the integrity of the heavenly message for each sign. (Slightly more normal service will be resumed tomorrow).The next part in the Causes for Concern series looks at the environment - click here.FRIDAY DECEMBER 27
Acknowledgement... plus Friday's Astronews
The festive season has been a time to celebrate – but also a time to remember the many people who need help and support: the victims of injustice who might never be rescued were it not for the work of Amnesty; the hopeless, homeless heroin addicts who have become today’s ‘lepers’ that nobody wants to know about; the environmental campaigners who are fighting a constant battle against a rising tide of wasteful consumerism – and, of course, the hungry all over this earth. How dreadful that at a time of feasting like this, so many should be starving. To acknowledge this is not to change it but it is at least to make a start...To read Bernard Fitzwalter's Astronews click here.SATURDAY DECEMBER 28
Keeping promises
If you are planning to make a resolution this New Year, leave it until Thursday. Then the moon will be new and you will have a much better chance of keeping your promise to yourself.

Happy Birthday!Jude Law Capricorn born December 29, 1972 Jude Law turns 30 tomorrow. Some people wonder if his fame will stand the test of time. But he is a truly typical of his sign – and Capricorns are like fine wines, the older they get, the better.Happy birthday also to Marianne Faithfull (56) tomorrow, Monkee Davy Jones (57) and Tracy Ullman (46) on Monday, Patti Smith (56) on Tuesday, David Bailey (64) on Thursday, and Sir George Martin (76) on Friday.

MONDAY DECEMBER 30
Shared communal areas
At this time of year, an awful lot of people do an awful lot of travelling. In the process, it seems, we visit an awful lot of awful places. The world, it seems, is full of spaces that ‘belong to nobody’. Interestingly, where these are just natural, empty bits of wilderness, they have an attractive, healthy quality. Where they are man-made locations (such as petrol, train and bus stations) they have a desolate, unloved air. I cheerfully predict, as we all now move towards a more enlightened future, that eventually people will become inspired to make their shared communal areas a lot more pleasant.
TUESDAY DECEMBER 31
The significance of New Year
There’s nothing astrologically significant about December 31. It is just a date on a calendar that was designed by a bunch of medieval mathematicians in a vague attempt to ‘emulate’ the complex cosmic rhythms that govern our world. And when, in any event, is ‘midnight’? It is different in London, Sydney, New York and Los Angeles. If New Year had real significance. it would happen at the same moment the world over. So it is no wonder that our resolutions are not always easy to keep. There’s rarely any ‘celestial support’ for them. Although this year, things are slightly different. I shall explain more about this, tomorrow.